Ogaga E. Maxwell United Religious Initiative 2011 Youth Ambassador representing Africa,was part of the youth leaders invited by the The United States Ambassador to Nigeria Mr. Terence. P. McCulley to a Reception with The Honorable Ms. Maria Otero Under Secretary of State for Democracy and Global Affairs On Thursday March 3, 2011 at the residence of The U.S Ambassador. The event which was aimed at creating a forum for young leaders to interact with the Under Secretary and also for her to meet with young youth leaders in Nigeria, as Nigeria prepares for her elections in April. The Ambassador in his opening remarks stated what honour we had to host the Under Secretary and also that she was on a visit to strengthen democratic activities in nations such as Nigeria She hinted the fact that it was time for young people to embrace positive change in terms of voting for the right candidate during the elections and also maintained that she was encouraged by the number of young people she saw doing positive things in the nation. There was time for question and answer and it was a fulfilling time having such a wonderful interaction with both guests. The key issue raised during the interactive forum was the preparedness of Nigeria for the upcoming elections and also the active role youths have to play in making sure we make the needed change in the nation. The issues of voter’s education, protection of our votes after elections and also citing the case of Egypt, Tunisia and other nations the role and power of Social Media in birthing change. The Under Secretary stressed that technology and social media has changed the face of politics and young people can take advantage of it for good, especially in the areas of election monitoring etc. We also had some fun viewing the video “My Vote fit change Niaja” a video produced by Youngstars Foundation and Julius Agwu Foundation for Youths, which is aimed at educating voters on the need to vote for change. The Under Secretary was really pleased with youth activities in Nigeria It was also time for social networking and also sharing with some few young people the values and principles of URI on a personal one on one level.
